Callander Celebrates Coaching

Callander -- The lack of qualified volunteer coaches is a chronic headache for Ontario’s sport and recreation programs. One remedy is Ontario Coaches Week, a week-long initiative of the Coaches Association of Ontario (CAO) that will take place across the province from April 14 to 21.

With events happening in over 40 cities across the province, and funded by the province’s Ministry of Health Promotion and the federal government, Ontario Coaches Week offers activities that target new coaches, women, aboriginals, and teacher coaches and are presented in partnership with governments, schools, sport organizations, grassroots organizers, and the corporate community.

As one of many events taking place across the province Callander will deliver a free Coaching FUNdamentals clinic on Monday, April 16, 2007 at the Yalarsky Park Community Centre. This two hours seminar is designed to introduce anyone thinking of coaching as well as inspire and rejuvenate existing coaches. All participants will receive a copy of the book "Best Coaches Best Practices" by Olympic Coach Andy Higgins.

“Our community coaches are the lifeblood of our sport and recreation programs,” says Susan Kitchen, executive director of the CAO. “Through Ontario Coaches Week, we attract new coaches, increase learning opportunities for current coaches, and celebrate the countless contributions that coaches make to their communities all year long.”

As a showcase for the province’s coaches, Ontario Coaches Week spotlights the enormous contribution these men and women make to their communities such as Callander. Did you know that:

- 1 in 7 Canadians say they have coached a team or are coaching sport?

- there are an estimated 142,000 active and 258,000 inactive coaches in the province?

- 29% of Ontario coaches have taken a coaching course and 18% are fully certified by the National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP)?

- more than 65% of certified coaches are coaching a local community or club team?

- of the Ontario coaches registered in the NCCP’s national database, 90% are volunteers and, of these, 41% are female?

- over 289,000 Ontarians have taken an NCCP course?

- 90,880 coaches, or 64%, are coaching children aged six to 12?

- Ontario sports with the highest number of coaches are baseball, ice hockey, soccer, basketball, and volleyball?

As impressive as the Ontario statistics are, equally important is the impact of these coaches. A whopping 92% of respondents to a comprehensive 2002 survey by the Ottawa-based Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport agreed that “sport has a positive influence on the development of values in today’s youth.” According to Kitchen, “much of that positive influence is directly attributable to our coaches. In fact, the CAO recognizes coaching as a social responsibility to make sport and society better and affect thousands of Ontario youth in positive ways.”

Submitted to BayToday.ca